Spiders

Starred Review* Much different from the usual sweet spider story, this photo-rich picture book is packed with astonishing facts about these highly successful predators. The chatty text explains that spiders were around more than 350 million years ago, long before lions and tigers; and that today more than 38,000 types still exist and are doing just fine. Bishop, a biologist and an expert photographer (he provided the pictures for Joy Cowley’s Red-Eyed Tree Frog, Booklist’s 2000 Top of the List-Nonfiction title), once again uses beautiful full-color photos to bring exciting science to children. General facts are here: the difference between spiders and insects; body parts (most spiders have eight eyes, although that doesn’t mean they all see particularly well); how they eat; and more. Each double-page spread includes a dramatic, brilliantly colored close-up of a spider in its natural habitat or at Bishop’s home, where he raised spiders so he could easily follow their molting, courting, and egg laying. One of the first photos is of the biggest known spider, the Goliath birdeater tarantula from South America, which is as big as a page in this large-size book. Whether it’s the hairs on a spider’s legs that sense touch or the gruesome stuff about how spiders turn their preys’ insides into soup, the details are riveting. Rochman, Hazel